Union Talk

AFT

Everyone in America deserves the freedom to thrive. Join AFT President Randi Weingarten on Union Talk as she interviews workers, policymakers and experts who are confronting the issues working families face and championing solutions from the classroom to the bargaining table to Congress to secure opportunity, justice and a voice in our democracy for all. If you care about great public schools and affordable higher education, healthcare as a right, unions, an economy that works for all and a thriving democracy, Union Talk dives deep into these issues and demonstrates that together we can accomplish for our families and communities what is impossible to do alone.

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20 episodes
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Avg 44 min
English

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S1 · E77
July 24 · 56 min
Building Our Power to Create a Better Future
On this episode of Union Talk, AFT President Randi Weingarten shares her speech from the recent AFT convention, in which she lays out a path forward for how AFT members and working people can build our power to create a better future for all. Weingarten details how working people can fight the chaos, corruption and cruelty of the Trump administration by harnessing the power of the people. And she explains how AFT members can get involved in the union's most ambitious election program ever to elect candidates from statehouses to Congress who will act on an agenda to help achieve the America we dream of: An America where everyone has opportunity and economic security. An America where everyone's dignity and freedoms are respected. And an America whose democracy not only endures but finally lives up to its noble ideals.
S1 · E76
June 4 · 56 min
Devices-Down, Eyes-Up, Hands-On
Live from the National Press Club, this episode of Union Talk features AFT President Randi Weingarten's major speech laying out a new vision for how America can boost teaching and learning in the era of artificial intelligence. Its "devices-down, eyes-up, hands-on" strategy for teaching and learning focused on 10 points that address the wave of technology in our schools, while leaning into strategies that engage kids and set them up for success no matter what the future holds. Weingarten shares how she drew on many of the conversations she's had on the podcast and in schools and communities across the country while developing the agenda.
S1 · E75
March 26 · 31 min
Tackling America's Affordability Crisis
Working people are being squeezed from every direction and finding it harder and harder to afford the basics. In this episode of Union Talk, AFT President Randi Weingarten talks with two AFT members about how rising costs are affecting them, their families, and the students and families they serve. They unpack the results of a recent survey of more than 7,500 AFT members that found 74 percent report living month to month, paycheck to paycheck. And they discuss both the tools the union is providing members to help them navigate debt and affordability issues, and what the AFT is fighting for at the bargaining table, in Congress and by holding corporations accountable to address the affordability crisis and help working people thrive.
S1 · E74
February 2 · 49 min
Unpacking the Harvard Youth Poll with Gen Z
On this episode of Union Talk, AFT President Randi Weingarten unpacks the results of the latest Harvard Youth Poll with Harvard Kennedy School Institute of Politics polling director John Della Volpe and two Gen Z AFT members who share how the results line up with their own personal experiences. The poll results underscore the instability that young Americans feel about the economy, massive technological changes, our politics, and their deep hunger for change and connection. Zac Coe, a math teacher in Virginia, and Madison Eckhart, a nurse in Alaska, connect these results to their work and lives. The guests discuss the changes young people are seeking to build a better future and ensure they have economic and political agency.
S1 · E73
Dec 18, 2025 · 34 min
A Transformational Approach to Public Education in Rural America
Take a trip to a rural corner of southeast Ohio, where New Lexington schools are unlocking real opportunity for students and offering a blueprint for relevant and engaging public schools that meet the needs of local communities. On this episode of Union Talk, AFT President Randi Weingarten talks with educators and a student about how New Lexington's approach to hands-on learning, career exploration, and student well-being is driving student engagement, providing students real ownership over their futures and breathing new life into a rural community deep in Appalachia.
S1 · E72
Nov 6, 2025 · 33 min
Taking on Trump on Student Debt—and Winning
For months, the Trump administration has illegally blocked people from accessing student debt relief they are entitled to. The AFT took President Donald Trump and Education Secretary Linda McMahon to court for their student loan lawlessness—and won! In this episode of Union Talk, AFT President Randi Weingarten discusses what this court victory means for borrowers, how people can access relief, and the union's continued fight to get people debt relief and make college affordable for all. Weingarten is joined by Protect Borrowers Legal Director Winston Berkman-Breen to review the impact of the case. She is also joined by two AFT members who were caught in the Trump administration's web of confusion and chaos on student debt: Corey Mason, a teacher in Connecticut, who finally got her debt forgiven after fighting for it with her union, and Stephanie Solis, a nurse in Ohio, who is still fighting for the relief she's entitled to.
S1 · E71
Oct 6, 2025 · 39 min
Healthcare Under Attack. Nurses Share the Impacts of Trump's Government Shutdown
AFT President Randi Weingarten is joined by three nurses to take us to the frontlines of the Trump and congressional Republican government shutdown. They share how the shutdown and continued attacks on healthcare are impacting them, their patients and their communities. Without action, millions of Americans will lose healthcare, hospitals will close, and premiums will skyrocket. The nurses take us inside their hospitals to talk about the real-life impacts of the decisions by the president and congressional Republicans to shut down the government rather than fix healthcare for Americans.
S1 · E70
Aug 28, 2025 · 38 min
A Back-to-School Season Like No Other
AFT President Randi Weingarten talks to educators about their aspirations and anxieties as they enter a new school year. This is a back-to-school period like no other, fueled by anxieties over historic federal cuts, raids tearing children and families apart, city occupations, and fears about the future of our country. Weingarten and educators discuss how this is impacting schools and students and how educators continue to show up to teach, support, nurture and help students reach their dreams.
S1 · E69
Jun 27, 2025 · 36 min
The Big Betrayal
AFT President Randi Weingarten unpacks the dangers for working people in the big, ugly bill being pushed through Congress by President Donald Trump and Republicans. The bill would affect nearly every family in America through horrific cuts to healthcare, education and critical services to fund tax breaks for the rich. Weingarten is joined by Alaska nurse Shannon Davenport, Connecticut nurse Heather Brauth and Virginia educator Laquetta Mackey to discuss how this bill will hurt patients, kids and our communities and what we can do to stop it from becoming law.
S1 · E68
Jun 11, 2025 · 59 min
World Pride
AFT President Randi Weingarten sits down with Los Angeles educator and United Teachers Los Angeles member Skye Tooley, as well as student activists Rehman Hassan, Ray Loux and Erica McPheeters for a special live episode of Union Talk during World Pride in Washington, D.C. World Pride comes at a time of growing attacks against LGBTQIA+ people, and this discussion focuses on speaking out, staying engaged, and advancing basic humanity for all across generations. Pride is a time of both activism and celebration, and the panelists discuss how to keep the joy through this ongoing fight for freedoms and rights, as joy itself is an act of spiritual and political resistance.
S1 · E67
Apr 23, 2025 · 51 min
Higher Education Under Attack
President Trump has declared war on America's colleges and universities. The administration has launched investigations into dozens of colleges and universities and stripped billions in research grants from schools. The administration is disappearing students who are in the U.S. legally for exercising their First Amendment rights. Three professors and union leaders join AFT President Randi Weingarten to provide a view from the frontlines of Trump's war on knowledge and discuss how we can fight back.
S1 · E66
Mar 25, 2025 · 47 min
Economic Opportunity or Destruction?
We're talking economics on this episode of Union Talk, but you won't need a Ph.D. to join the conversation. This episode focuses on how the economic policies of President Trump and Elon Musk hurt working and middle-class Americans—many of the same people who voted for Trump hoping he would help reduce costs and help working people achieve a better life. Economic expert Damon Silvers joins to set the baseline for the damage Trump and Musk are doing, and teachers Greg Cruey and Ternesha Burroughs share what their communities in Minnesota and West Virginia are experiencing. The group also discusses the labor movement's role in moving an agenda for broad-based opportunity and ensuring working people and their children have a shot at the American dream.
S1 · E65
Feb 27, 2025 · 48 min
Wrecking Ball: Teachers on the Devastating Impact Trump's Education Cuts Will Have on Kids
Direct from the classroom, four teachers join AFT President Randi Weingarten to talk about the devasting impact that President Trump's and Elon Musk's education cuts will have on their students and communities. From ripping away services for special education students and supports for impoverished kids to robbing working-class students of Pell Grants and the chance to go to college, social studies teachers Heather Stambaugh and Rodney Fresh and special education teachers Marsena Toney and Jennifer Graves give a firsthand account of how these cuts will hurt kids. They also discuss ways they are standing up to protect kids and preview actions happening across the country on March 4 to stop these cuts.
S1 · E64
Jan 17, 2025 · 35 min
On Strike: Oregon Healthcare Professionals Stand Up for Better Care Conditions
5,000 nurses, physicians and other medical professionals are on strike in Oregon, the largest healthcare strike in the state's history. After a day on the strike line, Dr. Lesley Liu and Rebekah Van Dyke, RN, join AFT President Randi Weingarten to share why they're on strike and how they're standing up for their patients, their profession and a fix to a healthcare system that puts profits before patients and caregivers.
S1 · E63
Dec 18, 2024 · 49 min
Union Talk: Finding Common Ground
AFT President Randi Weingarten sits down with two union members — one who voted for Harris and one who voted for Trump – to discuss not only what the November election meant to them, but how we can all find common ground within our union to fight for workers across America.
S1 · E62
Nov 18, 2024 · 34 min
The Power and Future of Unions with Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su
AFT President Randi Weingarten goes one-on-one with Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su to discuss the transformative power of labor, the recent rise of labor unions and how we can secure a better future for our kids by connecting education and industry in exciting ways.
S1 · E61
Nov 4, 2024 · 49 min
2024 Election Ground Game
AFT President Randi Weingarten invites election canvassers and organizers to discuss the importance of talking face-to-face to get out the vote during the crucial last few days of election season. Her guests are Labor Council for Latin American Advancement Westchester Chapter President Maria Kercado, Yolanda King from the Detroit Federation of Teachers, Ashanti Wood from For Our Future and Kate Sundeen from the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers.
S1 · E60
Oct 29, 2024 · 40 min
The Very Real Dangers of Trump's Project 2025
AFT President Randi Weingarten sits down with Joe Radosevich, vice president of campaigns and outreach at the Center for American Progress, for a searing episode about how Donald Trump's Project 2025 would decimate public education, our healthcare system, labor unions and our systems of justice—and how we can fight back.
S1 · E59
Sep 30, 2024 · 59 min
Keep Marching, Progress is Possible
Join the AFT Votes campaign during the Congressional Black Caucus Annual Legislative Conference for a political town hall and special live recording of the Union Talk podcast – discussing the modern rise of unionism and pro-labor values, the power of collective action and solidarity between workers, parents, students, and community, and the path to a progressive agenda with real solutions from the workplace to our communities to the polls.
S1 · E58
Sep 20, 2024 · 44 min
Behind the Scenes of the DNC with Minyon Moore
AFT President Randi Weingarten sits down with Minyon Moore, the chair of the Democratic National Convention, to get the inside story of this summer's biggest week in politics. The two discuss how the party celebrated the nomination of Kamala Harris, the perils of Project 2025 and the huge stakes of this election.

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